


Date at WcDonalds

by RebelFanja



Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: A little bit of comedy, Cole is a goof but we love him, Coliel, Cross-Posted on FanFiction.Net, F/M, Ghost!Cole, a little bit of romance, spending all night in a restaurant, that actually sounds like fun
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-08
Updated: 2020-06-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:29:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24610816
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RebelFanja/pseuds/RebelFanja
Summary: (Set after Season 5) Cole’s been having a rough time learning how to be a ghost. But a chance encounter and some finicky weather might be just the pick-me-up he needs.
Relationships: Cole/Seliel (Ninjago)
Kudos: 15





	1. Chance Encounter

**Author's Note:**

> Quick note, I wrote this story before I got my own copy of the 'Phantom Ninja' comic, and so it doesn't quite fit the way I write Seliel now. It's not extremely off either, maybe the difference isn't even noticeable, but I definitely would do it a bit differently nowadays. That being said, I'm still proud of this story as it is and plan to copy it exactly as is from FFN. I'll be posting a new chapter every day so come back tomorrow for more!

Cole was having a lot of bad days recently. Maybe it was because he was just in a bad mood, or maybe it was because he couldn't seem to hold anything in his hands without it dropping and breaking. Whatever it was, nothing was going right for him these days.

The last straw finally came one day while he was playing _Fist to Face_ , a mere hundred points away from beating his personal best score. Then, without warning, the game controller fell out of his hands – or rather, _through_ his hands – and he lost his advantage. He at first had to make sure _he_ didn't sink through the floor as well, and by the time he had scrambled to pick the controller up again, the words "Game Over" were flashing across the screen.

"Oh, come on!" He tossed the controller aside, defeated. "I nearly had that!"

Jay happened to be walking by at that moment, and paused in the doorway. He chuckled when he glanced at the TV screen. "You lose again?"

"I can't help it! I can't seem to stay solid for ten minutes at a time, and now I can't even play video games properly!"

"Oh." Jay's face fell when he understood Cole's dilemma. Honestly, aside from the green complexion and the dull glow, Jay had almost forgotten what had happened to Cole. He tried to find a bright side to encourage his friend with. "Well, it's only been a few weeks – "

"A few months, more like," Cole interrupted.

"Whatever. Point is, I know you've been working hard to gain control of your new abilities, but maybe it just takes more time. After all, we didn't learn Spinjitzu in a day."

But that wasn't the only problem, was it? There was so much in his life that was different now, nearly every day he was finding something new that he couldn't do anymore. And then he constantly had to be on the lookout to avoid liquids, so much that he had nearly developed a phobia as bad as Kai's. He couldn't imagine how he was going to function moving forward.

Cole got to his feet. "I'm gonna go for a walk," he announced. Jay looked like he wanted to say something more, but for once he managed to keep his mouth shut.

The _Bounty_ was parked right outside Ninjago City, so Cole figured he could just wander around there until he had blown off some steam. The sun was starting to set, so he wouldn't want to stay out for too long. But even as he passed through the city limits, he failed to notice the dark storm clouds forming in the sky.

He kept his head down and his jacket hood up, not wanting to see all the strange looks he would get from people. However, it seemed that no one really cared about him. Surrounded by crowds of civilians busy with their own lives, minding their business and not really worried about what he was up to, it felt good to be ignored. It felt normal.

His eyes darted up when he heard thunder rumble overhead. He had thought that it was only getting so dark because the night was setting in, but he hadn't realized that the clouds overhead were full and ready to burst.

He was about to turn tail and make a mad dash for the _Bounty_ , when he heard something else.

"Hey! That's mine!"

Cole looked across the street to see a woman chasing after a man with a purse.

Cole groaned to himself. He really had to get home, before it started raining – but there was no way he could just stand here and watch the thief get away. He checked for traffic and then sprinted across the street, praying that the rain would hold off for just a bit longer.

He could see the two figures up ahead. His earth powers wouldn't be much use in the city, where he could easily do more damage than good. But he was starting to catch up just as the thief turned a sharp corner and headed into an alley. The woman foolishly followed him, and Cole tried to pick up the pace.

But as he rounded the corner he was caught by surprise. Instead of being cornered in a dead end street, the girl seemed to have gained an advantage.

Cole watched in awe as she dodged his poorly planned punches and then retaliated with a sharp kick to the man's side. The thief doubled over and the woman snatched her purse back. And with another kick, the thief was out for the count.

"Huh. Guess I'm not needed after all."

Cole saw the woman tense before she spun around and threw a well-aimed punch at his head. Cole flinched, but of course, it went right through him.

"What the – " The girl backed away, but then her eyes narrowed in recognition. "Cole? Is that you?"

Now that he could see her face, Cole recognized her as well. He could even make out a few bright fuchsia locks under her hood. He chuckled to himself. "Ha! I should have known. Long time no see, eh?"

Seliel's eyes widened. "It is you! But . . . what happened?"

"Nothing too terrible," Cole said lightly, not wanting to get into the details now. "I can tell you the whole story later, but for now, why don't we get this perp to the to the proper authorities?"


	2. A Gentlemen Always . . . Nevermind

Cole had no problem creating a small earthen prison around the criminal to make sure he stayed put while Seliel called the police. The authorities didn’t take long to reach them, and Cole decided to stick around until she was finished. He still wanted to speak with her, see what she was doing here in the first place. She’d made it pretty clear before how much her village meant to her. Cole wondered if there was something wrong that had driven her all the way out here, or if maybe she was finally venturing away from home.

Cole was surprised with himself at how happy he was to see Seliel again. Truthfully, he’d been disappointed that she hadn’t joined them after their encounter with the nindroids. But with everything else going on at the time, she’d quickly faded from memory and he had hardly thought of her since. But now that he’d found her again, he felt as if he had been looking for her all along.

But while he was waiting, something else began to happen. He saw Seliel suddenly wince, as if being struck by something. She looked up and held out her hand, only to have a drop of water _plop!_ onto her palm.

"Looks like rain," she said, half to herself.

The rain! In all the fuss about the criminal, Cole had completely forgotten about the imminent threat. He looked around for shelter and was relieved to see that the storefronts on this side of the street were sheltered. He darted out of the alley and ducked under an awning, breathing a sigh of relief.

Seliel poked her head around the corner. "Afraid of getting wet?" she asked with a smirk.

"Something like that."

Seliel gave him a funny look but joined him under the awning. “They’re just about wrapped up here.” she told him. “Don’t need me anymore. You headed anywhere special?"

Cole shook his head. “Just . . . indoors.”

Seliel glanced through the window next to them. “Well if you're not picky, then this looks like as good a place as any. Want to grab a bite to eat?”

“I’d love to!” he said with perhaps a bit too much enthusiasm.

She smiled again and as they headed toward the little diner, he hurried ahead to open the door for her. Inside it was still pretty busy, probably even more so since the storm rolled in. A short line stood in front of the menu. He turned to Seliel.

“Go ahead and get anything you like, I’m paying.”

Seliel shook her head. “Oh, no, I'm not comfortable with that.”

“Don’t worry about it, I'd be happy to!” he said reaching into his back pocket. But when he found nothing there, he frowned. Reaching into his other pocket only yielded the same results. He realized with a wince and a sigh that he had purposefully left his wallet back on the _Bounty_ because he hadn’t planned on buying anything. “. . . Or maybe I won’t.”

 _Seriously?_ he thought to himself. _The one day I run into Seliel again, I just_ had _to leave my wallet at home._

Seliel gave him a sympathetic look and pulled out her own wallet. “I guess I can cover us both.” When he opened his mouth to protest she lifted a hand. “And how about next time, I’ll let _you_ pay.”

Cole sighed. “Fine.” But inside he was delighted at the prospect of there being a ‘next time.’ As he got in line behind Seliel, the rain outside was growing steadily stronger, but now he barely noticed. 


	3. It Ain't Easy Being Green

They stood in silence for a while for a while as the line moved up ever so slightly. Seliel kept glancing at him, and he could tell that she was trying not to stare or show how curious she was. He decided he'd have to tell her about it. They were more-or-less friends, so she deserved to know.

Soon enough they were able to order and find a seat. Cole steered them up a flight of steps to the mezzanine where it was less populated. The secondary floor was open to the first so that they still hear the chatter and bustle from below. One of the three walls was made up of windows, showing the shower outside. Cole and Seliel found a corner booth and sat across from each other.

"So what are you doing in the city?" he asked. "I thought you were still in your village with your father."

"Just visiting family," Seliel replied with a shrug. "I guess you could call it a vacation. What are you doing here? Any baddies I should know about?"

"Not that I know of. At the moment, I'm just trying to stay out of the rain."

"If you don't mind my asking, why does the rain bother you so much? I'm guessing it also has something to do with why my fist went right through your face?"

Cole heaved a sigh. "Our last mission ended up going a little south. It turned out alright in the end, we won and got our friend back, but . . . I made a mistake and now I'm paying for it." Cole lowered his hood and Seliel's eyes grew wide. She leaned over to one side, then the other, probably looking straight through him to the wall behind.

She blinked, and for a moment it seemed she had no words. "So you're . . ."

"A ghost. Yeah. And it's pretty permanent."

"Wow." Then she frowned leaned forward. "Are you trying to steal my schtick?"

"What?"

Seliel smirked and jabbed a thumb towards herself. "I'm the Phantom Ninja. 'Ghost Ninja' would just be a cheap knock-off. If you try to take my title, I'll sue. Just try me."

Cole smirked. "You know what? You can have it."

She shook her head and said in a playfully condescending tone, "Really, Cole. Are you so threatened by me that you had to try and copy my style?"

Cole scoffed. "I didn't see much 'style' worth copying when we fought together."

"Excuse me?" Seliel said incredulously, and for a moment Cole thought he'd gone too far. "Well maybe the next time Ninjago's in danger, I'll fight the bad guy just to show you boys how it's done." She grinned and crossed her arms in a very self-satisfied way.

"You know the invitation to join still stands," he offered.

"And let you all try to show me up again? Ha!"

He couldn't help but smile.

Seliel rested her chin on her hand and looked at him intently. "But be honest. What kind of cool stuff can you do?"

"Oh, you know, invisibility, possession, density shifting. Stuff like that."

"Now you're just bragging."

"I can't deny that it's come in handy on more than one occasion. Buuuut there are some drawbacks," he admitted. "Take the rain for instance."

Seliel glanced out the nearest window. The drizzle had turned into a downpour, confirming that he wouldn't be going anywhere for a while.

"Ghosts can phase through solid objects," he explained. "But liquids are so malleable that they're deadly to ghosts. One drop and I'll have to give up the ghost – permanently."

"Huh. Guess that means we can't leave until the storm passes. No wonder you were in such a hurry to get inside."

"You don't have to stay with me," Cole hurriedly reassured her.

"And leave you to fend for yourself? I don't think you'd survive the night!" Seliel teased. "Wait here, I'll ask the manager if it's alright if we stay until the rain stops." She got up to leave but paused. "And I promise won't say anything about your 'condition,'" she whispered with a slight smile. Then she rushed off before he could object.

Oh well, Cole would be glad of the company.


	4. Phone Home

At some point while he was waiting for Seliel to come back, Cole realized that he probably ought to call his friends to let them know he was alright.

When he looked at his phone – which he always kept silent – he saw that he already had more than a dozen missed calls and texts. He felt a pang of guilt for making everyone worry.

When he dialed the _Bounty's_ number, the phone hardly rang once before Jay's frantic voice sounded on the other end.

"Cole! What happened? Where are you? Are you okay?!"

"I'm fine, Jay," Cole answered calmly. "I'm in a little fast food place in the city. I'll be able to come home as soon as the storm clears up. For now I'm just gonna —" He was cut off when someone else picked up from a separate location on the Bounty.

"Is that Cole?" said Kai's voice. "Dude, where have you been? We've been worried sick!"

"I'm alright, Kai. I just went out for a little while. Like I was saying –"

"Cole? Is that you?"

"Brother! Where have you gone?"

Cole bit his tongue to keep himself from losing his patience. "Guys, _relax_!" he said. He threw a glance at the stairs to make sure Seliel wasn't coming back yet, then continued in a low voice. "Now listen: I just went out for a while to clear my head. I saw the storm rolling in but got caught when it started raining. Now I'm in this restaurant, and I'm gonna stay here until this little spritz is over. I'll be back before you know it."

"According to Pixal's calculations, this 'little spritz' is due to last for quite some time," Zane informed him.

"Believe me Cole, I know storms," Jay insisted, "and this one is going to be a doozy!"

Lloyd piped up. "If we land the Bounty right outside the restaurant, I'm sure we can find some way to get you one board without you getting wet."

"He's right," Kai agreed. "Hang tight, Cole we'll be there in a jiff."

"No!" Cole practically shouted. Then he remembered he was in a public place and recomposed himself. "I mean, no. I'll be fine, I promise."

"We can't leave you—"

"I don't need rescuing," he insisted. "I'll be fine. Just don't you dare, any of you, come here. I'll see you all later." He could already hear sounds of protest but hurriedly hung up the phone before any of them could make a coherent argument.

"Problem?" Seliel called as she approached.

Cole tucked away his phone and shook his head. "My brothers are just worried, that's all. I guess I would be, too, given the circumstances. But they can be a lot to deal with all at once."

"The manager said we can stay," she informed him. "I told them we live too far to even consider heading back in this weather."

Cole nodded his approval. "Good thinking."

"I think you're lucky," Seliel said as she sat back down. "I'm an only child, so I don't have siblings to fuss over me. But I guess my dad does that enough for a dozen potential siblings."

"Well, I grew up as an only child," Cole reminded her. "It wasn't very long ago that I met these guys. Still, it feels as if I've known them all my life."

Seliel rested her arms in the tabletop and leaned forward. "Well, since there's no telling how long until this storm lets up, why not tell me how you all met?"

Cole grinned. "Now _that's_ a long story."


	5. Brain Over Brawn

Cole had already lost track of time as he chatted with Seliel. Outside, the rain didn’t show any sign of letting up soon. He’d gotten around to telling her about how he had become a ghost, but reliving the event only reminded him how poorly that mission had gone.

"It doesn't sound to me like you did anything wrong." Seliel sat sideways in her seat, legs stretched out in front of her as she reclined against the wall.

Cole shook his head. "You don't get it. If I had been just a little bit faster, a little smarter, this might not have happened. Maybe none of it had to happen."

Seliel scoffed. "What, do you expect yourself to be perfect?" She sat up and leaned closer. "You can't get _everything_ right, we all messes up at some point. And sure, being a ninja means that the consequences of your mistakes are a lot bigger. But you did your best, right? What more do you want from yourself?"

She reached out and put her hand over his. "I know it must be terrible, but if you're going to have to live with it for the rest of your life, do you really think it will do any good to keep beating yourself up about it?"

_The rest of my life,_ Cole thought distractedly. _How long will that be?_ But he hated all the questions _that_ brought up and tried to push the thought out of his mind.

Meanwhile, Seliel realized she had managed to touch him and jerked her hand away. "Sorry. I wasn't really sure if . . . I mean I guess you are kind of solid. I'm just surprised. "

"Oh yeah, I can be solid whenever I want. Well, most of the time. I'm still getting the hang of it."

At that moment a light seemed to go off in Seliel's eyes and she gasped. "I've got it! I know the perfect test!" She slammed one elbow on the table, hand in the air. "Arm wrestle! We'll see just how solid you are."

Cole had to laugh. "You serious?"

"Dead serious."

"This won't even be fair," he argued, but locked hands with her anyway. "Ready? On your mark . . . get set . . ."

"Go!" Seliel shouted. Despite getting a head start, she wasn't able to catch him off guard. In fact, Cole could tell that she was applying pressure, but his arm wouldn't budge.

"You do know I have super strength, right?"

"I probably should have guessed," she grunted.

Gritting her teeth, she seemed to give it more effort, but Cole just gave a dramatic yawn. "Are you even trying?"

"Shut up!" she said with a laugh.

"Just let me know when you're ready to lose."

"No way!" Now Seliel brought up her other hand and tried pulling on his forearm.

"Hey, that's cheating!" Cole protested.

"But you just said you have an advantage!" Still, even with two hands, Seliel wasn't strong enough to make Cole's arm move even the slightest bit.

"Alright, that's enough." He slammed her hand against the table and because of the way she had been holding on, her whole body fell, too. But she was still laughing when she sat back up.

"You jerk!"

Cole raised his hands defensively. "I tried to warn you!"

"Okay, maybe you're right. I bit off a little more than I could chew. But I swear I almost had you!"

Cole rolled his eyes. "In your dreams!"

"Then I suppose you wouldn't be afraid to give it another go?"

He hesitated, not sure what she was trying to prove. But then he shrugged. "Well, okay. If you really enjoy losing that much."

They got into position again. Cole could tell that she was being very particular this time about how she positioned her arm, but he didn't think that it would matter. He gave the warning again. "On your mark . . . get set . . . Go!"

To his immense surprise, Seliel actually made his arm shift this time. Within seconds he lost all leverage and she slammed his hand onto the table.

He gaped at her. "How –"

"It's just science, baby!" she said with a wide grin.

Cole laughed. "That's amazing! I can't remember the last time someone beat me at arm wrestling!"

"You're welcome, I guess. And for the record, now you owe me double."

"When did I agree to that?"

Seliel rolled her eyes. "Oh please, it's, like, an unspoken rule that the winner gets a prize. Everyone knows that!"

"An unspoken rule, huh?" Cole repeated skeptically. "How convenient."

"Clearly you don't know the right people."

Cole raised his hands in defeat. "Fine. You win. Now I really owe you."

She nodded in a very self-satisfied sort of way. "And don't think I'll forget."


	6. Two Left Feet and One Wrong Move

It was getting late, and the place was nearly empty now. From their seats on the upper floor, Cole could almost imagine that it was entirely deserted.

"So what about _before_ you were a ninja?" Seliel was prodding him. "What did you do then?"

"Well . . ." Cole said with a wince. "Don't laugh."

Seliel shrugged. "No promises."

Cole took a deep breath. "Before I learned to be a ninja, I was learning how to dance."

Seliel gawked at him. "You're a dancer?"

"Not so much anymore. I hated it. Okay, well, I suppose it was fun _sometimes_ , but I hated practicing everyday. My dad put so much pressure on me to be the best. Nowadays I prefer learning how to fight and getting stronger."

Seliel pursed her lips and squinted at him. After a moment of silence, she said, "Nope, I can't see it. There's no way you can dance."

Cole scoffed. "Wanna bet?"

"I'll bet you have two left feet."

Cole stood and held out his hand. "Try me."

Seliel gave him a look that suggested she knew what he was up to, but she took his hand and stood anyway.

Overhead, the speakers were playing some slow pop dance. Cole was really more into the classics himself, but this song had a nice beat. Even though the music was low, they could hear it clearly over the rain drumming on the window.

Cole put his other ethereal hand on her waist. "Just follow my lead," he said.

There wasn't a whole lot of room, what with the booths lining the wall on one side and a row of tables on the other. But with a simple waltz, they wouldn't need much. Picking up on the beat, Cole began to lead her along, and he was pleased to find that Seliel had some idea of what she was doing. She followed his steps smoothly and without hesitation.

But holding her so close, Cole was reminded that, as a ghost, he couldn't feel anything anymore. He couldn't feel Seliel's hand in his, or the way she leaned into him as he guided her along. Still, there was something about just having her so close that thrilled him, and maybe that was enough for now. His new form had caused enough trouble in his life. He wasn't about to let it ruin this as well.

"Okay," said Seliel after a bit. She wore a tentative smile. "I'll admit you're not a total loss. But it's hardly impressive."

Cole huffed. "You're a tough judge."

Seliel shrugged. "Any fool can waltz."

"Any fool can do the steps, but not everyone can do it with flair." He lifted her arm and spun her away from him. Her bright hair flared out and she twirled gracefully. She came twirling back and he was about to catch her. But it seemed that Cole had lost focus enough that instead of coming to a stop, she spun right through him.

"Whoa!"

Cole gasped and heard her thump onto the tiled floor. He cringed. _Stupid, stupid - stupid ghost body!_ He whirled around. "Seliel! Are you okay? I'm so sorry!" He knelt beside her as she sat up, but was surprised to find that she was laughing.

"I guess I should have seen that coming." She brushed her hair out of her face. "I think you could use some more practice."

Cole sighed in relief. "Are you alright?"

Seliel glanced at her palms before wiping them off. "I'm fine, but this floor is nasty." She reached into her back pocket. "I'm gonna go thoroughly wash my hands, but you can go get us some dessert - and then maybe I'll forgive you this time." She shoved some money at him and then got to her feet.

Cole sighed to himself. _Real slick,_ he thought to himself. He glanced out the windows at the infinite deluge. At least he might have more time to make up for his blunder.


	7. A Few Games

Cole crouched in the booth, his head low so he couldn't be seen over the top of the seat. Dozens of straws and their crumpled wrappers littered the table behind him and the floor all around. He was almost out of ammo.

Slowly, carefully, Cole peaked over the back of his seat, a straw hovering at his lips. He spotted a flash of pink across the next booth and didn't hesitate to blow through the straw. The paper casing shot through the air and he heard a squeal as Seliel narrowly ducked back down.

But she was back up in an instant and now Cole had to drop back down. However, Seliel's straw wrapper had a hole and only puffed out uselessly.

This was his chance.

Cole dove out of the booth and rolled across the floor, coming to a stop next to Seliel's booth. He saw a spark of fear in her eyes as he ripped the top off another wrapped straw before lifting it to his mouth.

"Any last words?" he asked.

Seliel pretended to think about it. Then she whipped out another straw and with one puff of air, it hurtled at Cole. Before he could even think of trying to avoid it, it bumped his arm and then fluttered to the ground.

"Gotcha!"

Cole shot the wrapper at her, anyway.

"Hey!" Seliel threw her hands up to shield herself.

Cole smirked. "Gotcha!"

Seliel put her hands back down. "Fine, we'll call it a tie."

"Of course that's only because I let you get me."

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever. I guess we should clean this up, now."

Cole followed her gaze to the scraps of paper and plastic littering their little warzone. "You're probably right."

It was a chore to pick up all the shredded paper, especially after they started ripping it up even more and throwing it at each other like confetti. But every bit of paper _eventually_ made it into the trash bin. Once they had picked up all the debris, they were again faced with the question of how to entertain themselves.

"So what's next?" Seliel wondered as she tossed the last handful of scraps into the trash.

Cole considered their inventory. They'd used up enough of the straws already. And condiments would be much too messy. But napkins made a good writing surface. "How about a Tic-Tac-Toe tournament?" he asked. He wasn't really sure what would make it a tournament, but they could figure that out as they went.

Seliel wrinkled her nose in a way that made him smile. "That's hardly a good game. No one really wins when you know what you're doing."

"Oh, come on, it'll be fun!"

Seliel shrugged and finally agreed to give it a try. They were able to get a pen from one of the employees as well as a fistful of napkins. Cole tried making the game more 'extreme' by adding extra lines.

"Well now it's just connect four!" Seliel protested.

"No way, totally different thing."

"How?"

"For one, it uses X's and O's," he said, drawing the symbols to demonstrate. "And connect four just has those little disks. Tooootally different thing."

Seliel screwed up her lips and looked at him with a doubtful expression. "Mmhmm."

"And besides, you still have to make a row all the way across!"

"That's impossible!"

"Well it is with that attitude!"

Seliel just shook her head. "Fine. Give me that pen."

As she predicted, the game was just as futile as any regular match of tic-tac-toe, if not more so. Dozens of napkins were disfigured in the process so they had to clean up after themselves _again_ , and then they tried to decide what else they could do that wouldn't make as much of a mess. But after a few distinct yawns, it soon became clear that both of them were becoming too exhausted to start anything else. They ended up watching whatever played on the televisions in the restaurant. Of course the sound was off and there were only subtitles, but Cole and Seliel had more fun making up their own dialogue.

However, it wasn't long before they both started to get quiet. When Cole glanced outside, he thought there was barely more than a slight drizzle left. Any minute now the storm would be over and they would have to go their separate ways. He didn't even want to know how late in the night it was, he could almost tell by how exhausted he felt.

But Cole soon forgot about going home as he started to lose focus and it became harder and harder for him to keep his eyes open. All the noise from the speakers and machines gradually faded into the background. Soon enough, he was fast asleep, Seliel drifting off next to him. Both of them were much too tired to see the last few drops of rain hit the window.


	8. I Think They Ship It

Cole awoke that morning to the sound of loud and obnoxious whispering. The next thing he became aware of was how sore his back was. He felt stiff and very uncomfortable before realizing that he had been sleeping in a sitting position.

"Do you mind?" he muttered grumpily, rubbing his eyes.

"Agh, he moved!"

"Don't worry, I still got a good one – check it out!"

Cole froze. He recognized those voices. His eyes darted over to see Jay, Kai, and Zane clustered at the edge of the table where Cole and Seliel had spent most of the night.

"What are you guys doing here?!" he asked. He had specifically asked them _not_ to come!

Zane wore a slightly bemused look as he explained, "After the rain ended and you still did not return, we got worried and came to see what happened."

"Now I get why you didn't want us to come get you," said Jay, barely able to contain a fit of laughter.

Seliel was now very awake as well. "What do you think's so funny?" she asked Jay, clearly as annoyed as Cole was.

"Just that you two are so cuuute!" Jay gushed. "Check it out, I even got a picture!" Jay waved his phone in front of Cole's face, and Cole was horrified to see a picture of himself and Seliel side-by-side in the booth, fast asleep.

"Give me that!" Cole made a grab for the phone, but Jay was too quick.

"No way, I'm keeping this _forever_. Toughest ninja? Not anymore!"

"Ooh, can I see?" Seliel asked, much more enthusiastic.

Jay showed her the phone, but this time he was much less prepared, and she snatched it out of his hand.

"Hey!"

Before he had a chance to take it back, Seliel scrambled out of the booth and across the room. Cole darted out to block Jay before he could pursue.

"Aww," Jay groaned. "I was maybe gonna use that against him someday."

Cole grinned. "Nice one, Seliel!"

"So . . . now that the rain's over . . ." said Kai. "Are you gonna come back home or what? Or do you just live here now?"

"Yeah, yeah, sure. I just got tired waiting for the rain to stop, but now that my _life_ isn't in danger, I would like to go home."

Kai nudged Cole and had the decency to at least lower his voice when he said, "Don't act like you didn't enjoy being stuck here with her all night." Cole's only response was to shove him away.

"Hey, can I have my phone back now?" Jay asked.

"Just a minute," Seliel answered.

"You better not mess with anything on there. It doesn't take that long to delete a picture!"

"You know, I think I'll just grab something to eat," said Kai. "In the rush to get here, we didn't have time for breakfast."

"I wouldn't recommend it," said Zane. "The meals from fast food chains like this are terrible for your nutritional health."

Kai waved his hand dismissively. "Ah, haven't you ever heard of the phrase ignorance is bliss?"

"Catch!" Seliel tossed the phone back to Jay, who fumbled and nearly dropped it. She turned to Cole. "I guess I should be going, too. I'll see you around."

Cole's heart sunk. It had been so long since he'd last seen her, and this had only been a chance meeting. Who knew when they might run into each other again?

But then, he thought, she probably wasn't that anxious to see him again, anyway. Sure they'd had fun, but Seliel was only being a good friend. Who would ever want to be with a ghost?

"Yeah, I'll . . . see you around," he said, the words feeling dry in his mouth.

Seliel waved and Cole watched her go. He went to join his brothers while they ordered a quick meal, and then they finally _finally_ left that little restaurant.

The _Bounty_ was hovering just above the city and they used Airjitzu to get back on board. Just as Cole landed, his phone buzzed in his pocket. It was a message with a picture –

– _the_ picture.

Cole was ready to go clobber Jay before he realized that the message had been sent from an unknown number. There was a text with it that read:

_I had fun last night! Call me soon, we can hang out again sometime ;)_

A grin broke across his face. She wanted to hang out again! Maybe there was hope after all. And, admittedly, the picture was kind of cute.

Seliel's head rested on his shoulder, her pretty face serene in slumber. Her bright hair was even a little mussed after a long day and night, but it didn't take anything away from her appearance. It was really only himself that Cole wasn't too fond of in the picture. His head lolled back, his mouth parted slightly in a position that had given him a sore neck he was still feeling. He thought he looked rather silly. But then again, Seliel seemed to like the picture, so maybe it wasn't so bad.

"What's so funny?"

Cole looked up and hurriedly moved his phone out of sight as Jay approached. "Nothing. You wouldn't get it."

"Well Sensei Wu thinks we've wasted enough time rescuing you, and he's not too happy we compromised our diets either." Jay chuckled. "You should've seen the look he gave Kai when he caught him with half of a bacon burger stuffed in his mouth. Though, come to think of it, he might have just been disappointed we didn't bring him anything."

"In that case, I won't even mention all the junk I had last night. You're right, we better get going."

Cole followed Jay below deck, but not before taking one last look at the picture and message. He couldn't keep himself from smiling again. Things were finally starting to look up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lol sorry for leaving Lloyd out at the end, but he was kind of just a fifth wheel, y'know? Well this was fun, I enjoyed thinking of things for Cole and Seliel to do. I hope you all liked it, too. Thanks for reading, and I'll see ya around!


End file.
